The Canucks took Game 4 with a 4-3 overtime win at the Bridgestone Arena on Sunday, April 28th. Elias Lindholm struck the game-winning goal to secure the victory for Vancouver, and Brock Boeser recorded a hat trick to help the Canucks defeat the Nashville Predators. The Canucks lead the series 3-1, and the Canucks and Predators will meet again at the Rogers Arena on Tuesday, April 30th for Game 5.
Canucks lineup against the Predators:
Suter – Miller – Boeser
Hoglander – Pettersson – Mikheyev
Joshua – Lindholm – Garland
Di Giuseppe – Blueger – Lafferty
Hughes – Hronek
Soucy – Myers
Zadorov – Cole
Silovs
Tolopilo
Predators lineup against the Canucks:
Forsberg – O’Reilly – Nyquist
Beauvillier – Sissions – Zucker
Jankowski – Novak – Evangelista
Smith – McCarron – Sherwood
McDonagh – Josi
Lauzon – Carrier
Fabbro – Schenn
Saros
Lankinen
Early into the opening period at 17:05, Brock Boeser put the Canucks in a 1-0 lead. Boeser struck off a cross-crease pass from J.T. Miller with a one-timer at the bottom of the left circle. Mark Jankowski scored not too long later to tie it 1-1 when he redirected a slap shot from Jeremy Lauzon from the high slot past Arturs Silovs. This had been the last goal in the first period, heading into the middle frame stuck in a tie.
Gustav Nyquist put Nashville in front 2-1 with 9:14 remaining in the second. From the right circle, keeping a 2-on-1 rush with Filip Forsberg, and sent a wrister past Arturs Silovs above the shoulder.
Only 12 seconds into the third, Filip Forsberg increased Nashville’s lead to 3-1 after a cross-crease pass by Roman Josi had deflected in off his skate. Brock Boeser cut it 3-2 later into the third off Elias Lindholm’s cross-crease pass, putting a slap shot past Juuse Saros… With eight seconds left in regulation, Boeser struck once again for a hat trick and to tie it 3-3 to get into overtime. He collected his own rebound and then jammed it in at the left post during a 6-on-5 situation.
Elias Lindholm went for the 4-3 victory with a one-timer off Conor Garland’s pass from behind the net at the top of the crease.
Arturs Silovs on the victory, what allowed him to be calm, and how much he leans on the other goaltenders when finding out he’s going in: “It’s incredible – character win, scored two goals late in the third, and managed to pull it out. It’s a great feeling winning back here two games,” – “I think when I played in Latvia, for my hometown, it was the same atmosphere, I would say. It just feels great. Either they boo you or they’re there for you, it’s always great to play – They have more experience and now you look at those guys to learn something, and then you try to add to your game and to your mindset. That’s how you develop.”
J.T. Miller on the overtime win: “It’s a pretty special moment for our group… I thought they out-played us there for a heavy portion of the game. We had a good first period and then after that, we were losing a lot of puck battles… but we’ve showed a lot of no quit in this team all year long. To see Brock get rewarded there and the team get rewarded with the outcome, we feel really good. We’re going to enjoy it tonight, but we know we got to strap them on a little tighter for the next one.”
Notes:
– Arturs Silovs made a total of 27 saves in his playoff debut for Vancouver.
– Thatcher Demko is out week-to-week, and Casey DeSmith had been scratched earlier on Sunday with an undisclosed injury.
– Elias Lindholm recorded an assist and won 15 face-offs on 20 attempts.
– Juuse Saros made a total of 16 saves for Nashville.
– Dante Fabbro came into the Nashville Predators lineup for Spencer Stastney, who is out week-to-week due to an upper-body injury… Fabbro finished with one shot on goal in 12:45 of ice time.
